"Well, this is awkward..."
...One of them certainly thought that as the silence grew on. Of course some of them were not always the most pleasant persons to be around all the time (heads up: most of us aren't), but their time together were mostly good...
and he is waiting.
"We just to want to embarrass ourselves", another one must have thought too, so let's stop this silence without compromising ourselves! "The thing is... the rumor has it that..."
and he is waiting.
How long do you take to get ready to school or work in the morning? And at the gym? We are so focused on ourselves, our goals, our apparent success, our fashion, our lifestyle, our "fitting in", that we neglect whatever puts us on a tight spot ("I don't need this/them/him/her/that...).
When a ship needs to go faster, the captain orders the staff to pull the engines harder, but when it's sinking, the engines won't do it by themselves, so everyone needs to throw everything away...
We're not in a boat, nor even sinking, but many times in our lives we go over to fit in, don't we? This world we live in is every single moment telling us that "no pain, no gain", so we must go harder, faster, better, stronger. Leading us to live for the finish line only, just like racing horses, ignoring everything else, living a life without any amplitude, enjoyment, or any notion of our paths in life. A Lifeless life.
oh, and he is still waiting.
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?" (Matthew 16:13 NIV)
Now, the Bible doesn't say it, but think with me, how would you and the people around be with a question like that? (oh Lord, you are NOT going to like these answers!)
They replied, (yeah...so...)* “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?" (WHAT?!)*
(Matthew 16:14-15 NIV - and the asterisks are my "theatrical" inputs)
That moment. Oh, I'm going to ask Jesus to play that replay in heaven! Can you feel the expectation? He is not interested on the rumors or on the others, but on us! On our perspective of Him! OMG (never a better moment) I've been living with these patches over my eyes, so focused on myself, that I DON'T KNOW WHO JESUS IS! That's when Peter raises his voice with all the boldness and impetus that comes directly from God's heart to reveal and declare to heavens, earth and eternity: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:16 NIV)
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:17-19 NIV)
From that moment on, we know that that fishing would not be Peter's business anymore, so as ropes and sails would not be his day-by-day tools anymore, but the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.
No more Simon. Nice to meet you Peter, the ROCK.
When we get to know Jesus, He tells us who we are too...
and that is the best surprise of our lives.
God bless you,
TC.